Yapton & Ford Local History Group

Oral History

Oral History

Many of the villagers have experienced first-hand the changes which have occurred in the parishes over the last 80 years.  After reading about Oral History projects undertaken by various groups elsewhere in the country we decided this would be an ideal way to preserve the memories and spoken dialects of these residents.  Thanks to the LHI funding, members of our project team have been trained in oral history techniques and we have purchased professional recording equipment to ensure the quality and longevity of the recordings.

People who were at first apprehensive about being interviewed, thinking that they didn’t have anything useful to contribute, have been amazed at the amount of detail and knowledge they can recall with a little prompting from our interviewers!  Many have commented that they found it a pleasant and thought-provoking experience.

As of June 2006, a significant number of recordings have been made but we still have a large number of people to interview.  A synopsis has been made of each recording which is also transcribed verbatim.  This improves the usefulness of the recordings and allows them to be quickly searched for information when researching and cross-checking information.  Much useful information is contained within the recordings and we don’t want them to just lie in a dusty box never to be heard again!   

Doordrop March 2005

Once we have the collected reminiscences we will produce a summary booklet and compilation CD giving a flavour of what life was like growing up in the villages in the 1950s and 60s which will be distributed freely to local schools, public libraries and the County Record Office.

At the end of the project, copies of the transcriptions will be deposited with the County Library Service and the County Record Office.  Actually we do not envisage an ‘end’ to this project as such – we hope to continue to use the equipment and techniques learned to broaden the research and include memories of other villagers, all of whom have something to contribute towards conserving our history for future generations.